Domestic
Current grants and schemes for homeowners and tenants in Northern Ireland. Gas tariffs rise this week while oil support is open and an electricity discount starts. The main grant schemes are unchanged, but this issue adds detail on how NISEP works and what else is available.
Affordable Warmth Scheme (NIHE / DfC)
Open, subject to funding — no change this fortnight. Available to owner-occupiers and private tenants with total gross household income under £23,000; not available to NIHE or housing association tenants, holiday homes or B&Bs. Grants of up to £7,500, or up to £10,000 where solid wall insulation is required (detached properties only); private landlords pay 50% of the cost. Measures are prioritised in order: insulation, ventilation and draught-proofing; heating (oil/gas conversions, and boiler replacement where the boiler is at least 15 years old and the householder is over 65, has a child receiving Child Benefit or Kinship payments, or receives DLA, PIP, Attendance Allowance or Industrial Injuries Benefit); replacing single glazing; then solid wall insulation. Work must not start before written confirmation of grant approval. Route in: NI Energy Advice Service, 0800 111 4455.
Open
Warm Healthy Homes Fund (successor scheme — in development)
Whole-house and fabric-first, intended to replace Affordable Warmth. The DfC consultation ran 27 May to 19 August 2026 and is now closed; DfC says the fund is expected from April 2027. The Communities Minister has said it would need around £150m of investment over five years and is seeking Executive support — that budget is not yet confirmed. DfC's screening document refers to Affordable Warmth ending in March 2028, so expect a transition overlap.
In development — outcome pending
Home Heating Oil Support Scheme (DfC)
Opened 9 September 2026 and closes 31 March 2027. A £100 digital pre-paid card for use with NI oil suppliers, one per household; total funding £36.4m (£17.2m UK Government, £19.2m NI Executive). Eligibility: oil as the main heating source, resident in NI, and either net annual income under £30,000 (after tax, National Insurance and pension contributions) or receipt of a qualifying benefit such as Pension Credit, Universal Credit, income-related ESA, DLA, PIP or Attendance Allowance, in a qualifying period — any day in April 2026 or in November 2026. Helpline: 0800 072 0266. This is cash support and does not affect EPC ratings.
Open
NISEP 2026/27 (Utility Regulator / Energy Saving Trust)
Live for April 2026 to March 2027 or until funds are allocated, first come first served — some schemes have waiting lists and a few have closed. The official list has around 20 schemes across 11 Scheme Managers, funded by about £8m a year collected from electricity customers; at least 80% of funding goes to priority (vulnerable) customers. Extended to April 2027–March 2029: the Framework Document and Call for Schemes were due at the end of September 2026 but had not been published when this issue was compiled, and a new break clause allows closure after year one (March 2028) if DfE's successor programme is ready — notice would be given by the end of September 2027.
Open
NISEP 2026/27 — Who Can Get What
Income bands are gross household income (single person / couple). Under £28,000 / £35,000: fully funded heating plus insulation, and heat pumps (owner-occupiers). Under £33,000 / £40,000: fully funded cavity wall and/or loft insulation (owner-occupiers). Under £45,000 / £50,000: part-funded heating, where you pay 40% of the heating cost, with fully funded insulation (owner-occupiers and private tenants). Any income: a 40% grant towards cavity wall and/or loft insulation (up to £650 per measure, or £1,000 for cavity wall extraction and refill) for owner-occupiers and private tenants who do not qualify for other NISEP schemes. All are subject to availability and a survey confirming the property is suitable, and NIHE leaseholders are generally excluded. Some gas-linked heating schemes apply only in particular gas network areas (Greater Belfast, Co. Down and East Antrim; or nine towns west of the Bann), so much of Causeway Coast & Glens is limited to the NI-wide schemes. Not eligible: self-build and new-build homes (including new extensions), flat roofs for loft insulation, and any measure grant-funded in the last 15 years or approved under Affordable Warmth. Terms vary by Scheme Manager — confirm against the official list before advising.
Open — terms vary by scheme
Heat Pumps & Solar PV — Routes in NI
Heat pumps and solar PV are funded only through individual NISEP schemes — mainly for priority households under £28,000 (single) / £35,000 (couple), using MCS-certified installers, with pre- and post-installation EPCs for heat pumps. Affordable Warmth does not fund them. In development: DfE's Domestic Energy Efficiency and Low Carbon Heat Programme, aimed at a 2027/28 launch — its scheme-design consultation was promised for summer 2026 but had not been published when this issue was compiled. On running costs, the Power NI regulated tariff rose 6.2% from 1 July and was not part of the autumn review, and the Utility Regulator's network-tariff consultation could change heat pump economics over time. Not available in NI: the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, ECO4, the Great British Insulation Scheme, Warm Homes: Local Grant, the GB Smart Export Guarantee, and Republic of Ireland SEAI grants — a common source of client confusion near the border and in online search results.
Ongoing
Household Electricity Discount (DfE)
£63, paid automatically from 6 October 2026 to most NI households (eligibility is based on NIE Networks data at 4 October; businesses are excluded). It appears on bills as "NIRO & VAT Govt Credit"; keypad customers receive it as credit on their next top-up. Further discounts are planned for 2027 and 2028, with amounts still to be announced. You do not need to apply — be wary of anyone asking for bank details. Queries: NI Energy Advice Service, 0800 111 4455.
From 6 October 2026
0% VAT on Energy-Saving Materials
Until 31 March 2027, installing qualifying energy-saving materials in homes — for example insulation, heating controls, heat pumps, solar PV and batteries — is zero-rated for VAT in Northern Ireland. From 1 April 2027 it is due to return to 5%. The relief covers supply-and-install rather than DIY materials, and may not apply where the work is part of a larger project such as an extension. Ask your installer to confirm the VAT treatment on your quote.
Ends 31 March 2027
EV Chargepoint Grants (OZEV)
Renters and flat owners with dedicated off-street parking can get up to £500 (75% of cost) towards a home charger; landlords and workplaces have separate £500-per-socket grants. There is currently no grant for homeowners with their own driveway. Use an OZEV-approved installer and confirm current terms for Northern Ireland before work starts.
Confirm terms before work
Local Energy Advice — Councils
Causeway Coast & Glens and Mid & East Antrim councils both run free home energy advice services that can help residents find and apply for grants and oil-saving schemes. Mid & East Antrim: 0300 124 5000. Neither council runs its own capital grant for home energy upgrades.
Free advice
New Build
Building regulations and compliance updates for new dwellings in Northern Ireland.
Technical Booklets & Methodology
Technical Booklet F1 (2022) for dwellings and F2 (2022) for non-domestic buildings remain current — no DoF consultation or amendment found this fortnight. SAP 2009 Conventions v5.0 is unchanged and remains the only approved NI new-build methodology for EPCs and Building Control compliance. RdSAP 10 (live in NI since June 2025) applies to existing dwellings only, allowing airtightness test results to be entered, with age band M covering 2023 onwards. Online commentary about EPCs moving to the Home Energy Model in 2027 relates to England; no NI announcement has been made.
Operative
Grants and Self-Build
Self-build and new-build homes, including new extensions, are not eligible for NISEP grants, so for self-builders the practical support is the 0% VAT relief on qualifying energy-saving installations (to 31 March 2027, where it applies) and, in some cases, the EV chargepoint grants. Where a project includes an extension, check with the installer and your adviser whether the VAT relief applies to that work.
Limited grant support
Self-Build Lending — Design-Stage Check
Ecology Building Society asks self-builders to reach a SAP rating of 88 or above (or Passivhaus) at completion. For NI one-off houses that rating comes from the SAP 2009 v5.0 new-build calculation, so it is worth confirming the target at design stage alongside the TB F1 check. Ecology's last published self-build range is 5.69% up to 65% LTV and 5.89% up to 80% LTV, maximum loan £1.25m, C-Change discount up to 1.50% — rates may have moved since publication, so check before quoting. No changes found to other lenders' stage-inspection requirements or product availability.
No change
Construction Cost Inflation
No new BCIS or RICS NI tender price index this fortnight. The latest NI read (Rider Levett Bucknall, Q1 2026) has tender price growth settling around 3%, driven mainly by labour. In the Republic of Ireland (SCSI, August 2026), commercial construction inflation was 3% in H1 2026, triple the previous half-year — context only. Watch: the wholesale gas spike may feed into energy-intensive materials (blocks, cement, insulation), but there is no verified NI material price data yet.
~3%, labour-driven
New-Home Registrations & Self-Build Resilience
NHBC registrations in NI: 598 in Q2 2026 (down 22% on 768 in Q2 2025) and 445 in Q1 2026 (down 44%, the lowest since Q1 2013). Selfbuild.ie reports that one-off and self-build activity is holding up better than larger schemes, which are constrained by NI Water capacity — so demand for cost plans and stage inspections is likely to be more resilient than the headline figures suggest. No Q3 release yet.
Volume builders under pressure
Commercial
Grants and funding for non-domestic buildings and businesses in Northern Ireland.
Invest NI — Energy Efficiency Capital Grant
Still paused pending review, and Invest NI is not accepting enquiries or applications. The eligibility criteria (minimum £4,000 spend, 1–8 year payback, grants of up to £150,000) may change on reopening. No change this fortnight.
Paused
Invest NI — Resource Efficiency Capital Grant
The call for applications is closed — no new applications were issued after 27 March 2026. It was open to Invest NI client businesses only (grants up to £50,000 at 10%, 20% or 30% depending on business size). No reopening announced.
Call closed
NISEP — Business Element
A single NISEP scheme covers non-domestic buildings: a 20% grant (80% applicant contribution) on measures including boiler replacement, intelligent heating controls, lighting, solar PV, solar thermal and other equipment, open to commercial and non-domestic properties NI-wide. Lighting and solar PV grants are capped at £30,000, and additional caps may apply. With the EECG paused and the RECG closed, it is currently the main open grant route for NI business energy efficiency.
Open
Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (DESNZ)
The UK Government has reported that the fund will not be further extended; no new NI competition window is open. Only projects already committed remain funded.
Reported closed